A degree to meet your needs

Natural Resources Degree

As a natural resources student, you are passionate about the world around you. You are curious. You ask questions. You collaborate to preserve and protect the natural world for future generations. Your natural resources education is what you make it, and you can study natural resources from just about anywhere. The major is offered on Oregon State’s main campus in Corvallis, at OSU-Cascades in Bend and through Oregon State Ecampus.

NATURAL RESOURCES SPECIALTY OPTIONS:

The natural resources degree program is extremely flexible, allowing you to combine various areas of interest into your degree. Our specialty options range from conservation law enforcement to wildland fire ecology and everything in between. Our advising guide makes it easy to customize your education.

Paying For College

There are a variety of options for you to fund your education and research-related expenses. $500,000 in scholarships are available - and that's just from the College of Forestry. The College of Forestry is dedicated to making sure our degrees are affordable.

Possible Careers:

Environmental or Science Educator

Teach about trees

Teachers inspire students to seek out answers to their questions, and environmental and science education is no different. Teachers don’t just work with children; they can also educate adults in a classroom, or in other, nontraditional settings.

Salary range: $39,370-$119,410

Possible Careers:

Forest/Rangeland/Wildlife Ecologist

Organisms and environments

Ecologists can be teachers or researchers who study the relationships between plants and animals and their environments. They strive to understand the natural world and teach others about it as well.

Salary range: $34,910-$61,220

Possible Careers:

GIS Specialist

Mapmaking for the digital age

GIS stands for geographic information systems, and specialists in this area work with software to create and maintain data and maps. GIS specialists can work outside collecting fieldwork and inside, pouring over their data on computer screens.

Salary range: $40,000-$80,000

Possible Careers:

Naturalist

Loving nature

Naturalists generate interest in our world including places like parks and other natural areas. They sometimes provide interpretation for visitors, or do a variety of other interesting jobs to promote the benefits of getting outside.

Salary range: $40,000-$60,000

Possible Careers:

Riparian/Watershed Specialist

Better water for all!

These specialists can work for government agencies at all levels to coordinate advise management activities within watersheds. Duties can include planning, education, group development and going out in the field to complete stream assessments.

Salary range: $40,000-$60,000

Possible Careers:

Wetlands Restoration Specialist

Keep wet areas clean

Wetland restoration specialists work to preserve ecological sustainability of wildlife, maintain cleanliness of water resources, remove pollutants from wetlands and step in when wetlands need help. They monitor wetland areas to gather data, draft reports and share what they learn with the public. They often work outside and for government agencies or research universities.

Salary range: $20,000-$70,000

Possible Careers:

Interpreter or Recreation Guide

Share science with the public

Sometimes referred to as ‘park rangers,’ state and national parks employ interpreters and recreation guides to make visitors’ experiences more meaningful and educational. Guides accompany guests on trails, scenic overlooks and even on water. They are experts on the areas in which they work, and almost always work outside.

Enforce the law outside

Salary range: $25,000-$60,000

Oregon Forest Science Complex

We’re building you an awesome new place to learn, study and grow. Construction of the Oregon Forest Science Complex is underway and will be completed in 2019. It will include a new Peavy Hall and the A.A. “Red” Emmerson Advanced Wood Products Laboratory

Experiential Learning

With thirteen options within the Natural Resources major, students have a wide variety of experiential learning opportunities to choose from. Natural resources majors get outside and get their hands dirty participating in internships, work experience and job shadowing.

See Yourself Here

Oregon State University is located in Corvallis, one of the top-ranked college towns in the country. A one-hour drive from the Pacific Ocean, and a two-hour drive from the Cascades and high desert, it is an ideal place to live and work.